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A unique creative facility for artists, the public and local and international communities.Mon, 02 Mar 2015 13:28:03 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1Locking Hair Unpicking Vulnerability – by Rachael Younghttp://www.weareprimary.org/2015/03/locking-hair-unpicking-vulnerability/
http://www.weareprimary.org/2015/03/locking-hair-unpicking-vulnerability/#commentsMon, 02 Mar 2015 13:28:03 +0000Rebecca Beinarthttp://www.weareprimary.org/?p=5178Locking Hair Unpicking Vulnerability Rachael Young

During Hair Happenings my provocation was to open up the very private experience of my hairdressing process to an audience.

For years my hairstyling process has been mostly one that happens in the comfort of my own home. Having learnt at young age that my hair was [...]]]>

Rachael Young at Shayaa. Photo: Michael Forbes

Locking Hair Unpicking Vulnerability
Rachael Young

During Hair Happenings my provocation was to open up the very private experience of my hairdressing process to an audience.

For years my hairstyling process has been mostly one that happens in the comfort of my own home. Having learnt at young age that my hair was an unwanted source of intrigue. At Primary School those encounters were always short and sweet and the intrigue acted as a blessing meaning not having to endure the finely toothed metal comb wielded by the Nit Nurse. I knew my hair was different but to me it was normal.

At secondary school uninvited hands would descend into my Jerry Curl only to recoil in fear as they describe my hair as feeling like ‘chip pan grease’ a remark that does not consider that afro hair unlike European hair types requires moisture in order for it to grow healthy and strong. But we were children and what did we know? I knew that, that comment made me feel uncomfortable, not normal, so I soon got rid of the Jerry Curl, opting for a straighter look provided by a relaxer. Later my hair was called ‘candyfloss’ by a friend’s brother, this is probably the one experience of my hair being touched without asking that I didn’t mind, after all ‘candyfloss’ is sweet and pink and I felt girly.

In adulthood I’ve still had to fend off the unwanted hands reaching for my hair, with the ‘can I touch it?’ which always makes me feel awkward as though my hair is not ‘normal’. When wearing my hair in an afro my friends with European hair types ask me ‘when am I going to do my hair?’ Like it in its natural state is some how offensive. Many black women still feel like they need to wear their hair in more European styles to be able to get the kind of jobs they want or to be seen as attractive. Certainly at school I wanted super straight hair to fit in with my friends.

Maybe the jibes are partly the reason for me choosing to do my hair at home and maybe it was also the fact that learning to do my own hair meant that I have creative control over my own identity, I decide when its done, I decide if it suites my face and ultimately I make a final call on what is beautiful.

When doing my hair there is almost certainly a point where I feel unattractive, half finished and this makes me feel very uncomfortable. During Hair Happenings I wanted to explore how it would feel to give control of my hair to a stylist (which is something that makes me feel uneasy). Not only that, but to put myself in the very position where for so much of my life I have been uncomfortable/vulnerable. A position where I was bound to get asked the question ‘can I touch it?’

So that is what I did, for 12 hours until my hair transformation was complete. Throughout that time I had conversation with people who came to watch the process and talk to me about what made them feel vulnerable or uncomfortable. The salon seems to me to be the prefect place for this since I always feel like the salon chair has the same power as a confession box. I had also chosen to have healthy hair food on offer, this was because the salon where I had chosen to get my hair done has a focus on nurturing healthy hair by working from the inside out, and therefore having an awareness of what foods we put into our bodies and how that might impact on hair growth. I feel like the food also served as comfort for me, a distraction from feeling exposed. However despite my comfort eating at times I did feel exposed, uneasy and on show. I also questioned how other clients might have felt having people entering a space that for them is quite private. It seemed that my concerns were unfounded as the audience’s attention was mostly focused on my process and so didn’t intrude on the experience of the other clients.

Shayaa was the right choice for this experiment as I feel it nurtures and supports the choice to have natural hair and cultivates black British identity. It is a place where you can feel comfortable as you are without judgment.

I don’t feel that this experience will change my attitude towards people wanting to touch my hair that question will always feel miss-placed and insensitive. As the sentiment behind it suggest that my kinky coiley hair is an anomaly. So the next time I am asked ‘when are you going to do your hair’? I will answer with conviction and simply say ‘it’s done!’

Below are some snippets from my conversation

‘I felt vulnerable when I have to come into this salon,’

‘I live with a constantly with this feeling, but I don’t always feel like that is a negative thing’

‘I don’t think I ever feel venerable, or at least I wouldn’t use that word. Perhaps to feel vulnerable means that you have put yourself into a position where other can take advantage and I wouldn’t like that’

‘There something about wearing a skirt that makes me feel like that maybe its because of the way it makes me move’

Due to the specific focus of this unique residency, interest in the connections between mental health and art, as well as experience in working with archival material [...]]]>

Rampton Secure Hospital

Rampton Secure Hospital – Acting Out Nottingham 2015Research focused ResidencyApril / May 2015Call now open for artists living in the Midlands, UK

Due to the specific focus of this unique residency, interest in the connections between mental health and art, as well as experience in working with archival material is essential. Applications can be for research- focused projects.

Deadline for applications: Friday the 20 March 2015

This new part-time residency, conceived by Rampton Hospital, Primary, and Acting Out Nottingham 2015, will support an art research project engaging with the discourses that surround art within psychiatric contexts, projects looking at the history of how artists have engaged with the politics of closed institutions, and conversely how closed institutions have engaged with art and artists, specially in light of previous and existing experiments with art and performance ranging from therapeutic, socially engaged and expressive work.

Rampton Secure Hospital is a high security hospital that houses about 400 patients who have been detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 under the criteria of “mental disorder”. The research-based residency will primarily focus on the legacy of artists’ engagement with Rampton Secure Hospital and similar institutions, and will not include any contact with patients.

We are looking for experimental and context-specific proposals for projects or research to be developed in collaboration with Rampton Secure Hospital with the aim to research one or more of following points:

- The history of the way in which artists and or art has been used within the hospital.
- How theories of space in relation to Mental Health has been put into action or discussed within the institution.
- Legacies of artists’ involvement within closed institutions, such as Ian Breakwell and the Artist Placement Group’s engagement with Broadmoor and Rampton hospitals. (Documents relating to these relationships are held in the Tate Archive in London)

The residency comprises:

- Access to Rampton Secure Hospital
- Opportunity to interview selected staff from Rampton Hospital
- Access to spaces at Primary for the duration of the residency (to be agreed with artist)
- A platform to present research at Primary and Rampton Hospital as part of Acting Out Nottingham 2015
- Administrative and curatorial support from Primary and Acting Out Nottingham 2015
- A total budget to cover all costs of £1200

For further information and to apply please download full information here

The residency is funded by Art Council England and the University of the Arts London.

For the second Intersections commission, Primary invites the ‘…And Beyond Institute for Future Research’ to base its operations in the city of Nottingham, from January to June 2015.

The ‘…And Beyond Institute for Future Research’ is a peripatetic, performative think tank led by artist Sonya Dyer, which positions women as progenitors of a future Space Programme. The ‘…And Beyond Institute for Future Research’ uses the model of the think tank as artistic proposition, engaged with the practice of research as a public act and creating visions of possible futures.

What would an International Space Programme led by women look like?

At Primary, the project aims to develop a team of women who are interested in working towards the creation of this Space Programme, through the radical act of claiming the right to imagine the future, and working together to envisage it.

‘…And Beyond Institute of Future Research’ wishes to invite a wide range of Nottinghamers to collectively construct the Future, from elders to teenagers, call centre workers to scientists, shop assistants to academics, comic book fans to futurologists.

In March, Sonya Dyer will give a public talk and performance, presenting research from the ‘…And Beyond Institute for Future Research’ as part of the Intersections commission.

Intersections is an ongoing strand of commissions that expands our activity beyond the boundaries of the building, engaging with people and places in the local area. Each project extends an invitation to individuals and communities to share and explore specific sets of knowledge, in connection to artists’ research and production processes.

The Intersections programme is kindly supported by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: The …And Beyond Institute for Future Research comes to Primary. Recruits women of Nottingham for Future Space Programme.

Peripatetic think tank the …And Beyond Institute for Future Research has been invited by Primary to temporarily locate its activities in the city of Nottingham until the end [...]]]>

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:The …And Beyond Institute for Future Research comes to Primary.Recruits women of Nottingham for Future Space Programme.

Peripatetic think tank the …And Beyond Institute for Future Research has been invited by Primary to temporarily locate its activities in the city of Nottingham until the end of June 2015.

The …And Beyond Institute for Future Research (ABIFR) is actively recruiting women to work collectively to imagine the most exciting, radical vision of The Future they can. It is looking for women from all walks of life to bring their knowledge, passion and experience to the task.

Who makes The Future?

Is imagining The Future a political act?

Drawing on the illustrious – yet undervalued – history of women’s contribution to the construction of our shared human Future (including such luminaries as Sally Ride, Lt Nyota Uhura, Dr Mae Jemison, Dr Ryan Stone, and Sunita Williams) the ABIFR’s mission is to place women’s labour at the forefront of the Space race.

At 5pm on Tuesday 3 March 2015, the …And Beyond Institute for Future Research will hold a press conference at PRIMARY, Nottingham, UK, featuring the world premiere of the it’s first infomercial.

The Future is a destination. The …And Beyond Institute for Future Research will take you there.

The …And Beyond Institute for Future Research is think tank as artistic proposition, engaged with the practice of research as a public act, creating visions of possible futures. As a working think tank, the Institute draws upon a range of experiences and talents to develop its prime directive – creating the Space programme of The Future.

For the first Intersections commission, artists and hairdressers Richard Houguez and Rachael Young have been researching independent hairdressers in Radford and Lenton – finding out about the way these spaces function and exploring the qualities of relationships between hairdressers [...]]]>

For the first Intersections commission, artists and hairdressers Richard Houguez and Rachael Young have been researching independent hairdressers in Radford and Lenton – finding out about the way these spaces function and exploring the qualities of relationships between hairdressers and their clients. They have been visiting salons in the area, and are working closely with six hairdressers to develop a series of objects and performances – revealing some of the subtle and powerful roles these individuals play in their communities.

Rachael and Richard have taken an informal approach to researching places of hairdressing – responding to the specifics of each salon. Starting with the experience of entering and being greeted, they developed their understanding of the spaces by building personal relationships with the respective hairdressers through services, treatments and conversation. The second part of the commission will work with aspects of haptic intimacy and storytelling experienced in these salons, with the aims of building relationships through mutual interests and listening for difference.

In December, there was a public Hair Consultation – a day of performances and one-to-one discussions at Primary. Over the day studio artists, local hairdressers, special guests and public were invited to share stories and questions, and draw out a collective map of hair, its private symbols and wider social contexts. Richard’s blog about the event is now online, and you can see documentation and videos from the day here.

To bring the commission to a close in January, there will be a walk leaving from Primary to the surrounding salons that have been central to the research, responding to some of the ideas that come out of the consultation and that have been developed through the project. This will be an opportunity to see work generated through the project – such as bespoke hairdressing bibs, performances made for individual salons and a zine created in collaboration with photographer Ben Harriott. For more details of this event see Hair Happenings.

Rachael and Richard would also like to be in touch with mobile hairdressers operating in the area. Please contact the artists if you have any information, or if you’d like to share anything else: richard.houguez@gmail.com

Intersections is an ongoing strand of commissions that expands our activity beyond the boundaries of the building, engaging with people and places in the local area. Each project extends an invitation to individuals and communities to share and explore specific sets of knowledge, in connection to artists’ research and production processes.

The Intersections programme is kindly supported by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

A mysterious gourmet tour of Primary in eight courses and exclusive fundraiser.

Primary invites you to a magical evening of food, art and exploration. Resident cook and artisan baker, Kimberley Bell has designed a banquet of extraordinary dishes in collaboration with Primary artists, which will take you on a tour of intriguing spaces and places. This sensory adventure will combine food, art, music and the unexpected. How will it appear? Where will it be served? Experience Primary transformed, for one night only.

Help us reach our fundraising target. This is a key fundraising event to help maintain our Grade II listed building and develop our programme at Primary, ensuring we are a creative resource for the city.

The final commission within Multiple points in this crude landscape, will see Shana Moulton undertake a period-in-residence at Primary to make and present several new works, concluding with two performances that use the space in distinct ways

The final commission within Multiple points in this crude landscape, will see Shana Moulton undertake a period-in-residence at Primary to make and present several new works, concluding with two performances that use the space in distinct ways

Shana is a New York based artist whose work explores the life of her alter ego Cynthia – a hypochondriac woman – who is constantly seeking relief from her anxieties and in the process of which, is searching for transcendental or mystical experiences. As she takes this journey towards personal growth and wellbeing, Cynthia’s interactions with her surroundings and the objects she encounters flicker between the everyday and the magical.

The objects, both made and found, create Cynthia’s virtual and physical world, framing her actions and behaviour, and performing as characters themselves. These created environments stem from personal experiences, subconscious associations, and fantasy, allowing an inner logic to develop, where the objects’ properties and associations acquire the power to shape the narrative. Banal medical and orthopaedic devices become uncanny, open up portals into parallel worlds, and present the opportunity for further spiritual exploration.

Shana will create a set and several sculptural costumes, with which to experiment with new videos and performance. The transformed architecture at Primary with its abundant natural light, space and mirrors, will provide a new world for Cynthia to inhabit, out of which further objects and narratives will emerge. Aspects of this new performance will be shown at South London Gallery, before a final presentation at Primary in January. The sculptures and video will also then be re-presented at forthcoming exhibitions at Gimpel Fils Gallery (London), Gregor Staiger (Zurich) and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San Francisco).

Events

Rather than presenting a singular outcome, Shana’s time at Primary will be punctuated by a series of events that share and reveal different aspects of her working process.

The Expanded Studio Project is an artist-led initiative from the studio holders at Primary and Wysing Arts Centre, Cambridge. The project randomly pairs 26 artists from the two studios through a lottery to act as a catalyst for new collaborations, producing new work over a four-month [...]]]>

The Expanded Studio Project is an artist-led initiative from the studio holders at Primary and Wysing Arts Centre, Cambridge. The project randomly pairs 26 artists from the two studios through a lottery to act as a catalyst for new collaborations, producing new work over a four-month period of exchange.

Join us on Saturday 28 February for an afternoon of film screenings, installations, performances and work-in-progress by the thirteen artist pairs:

This project has been made possible by the generous support of Arts Council England, Wysing Arts Centre, Primary, Aid & Abet, Nottingham University, Cambridge School of Art and Nottingham Trent University.

The third event in this series brings together Eastside Projects and Hotel Charleroi. After an initial meeting at Brussels Art Fair, where Hotel Charleroi had a not-for-profit stand, Eastside Projects have invited them to consider undertaking a project in Birmingham. [...]]]>

The third event in this series brings together Eastside Projects and Hotel Charleroi. After an initial meeting at Brussels Art Fair, where Hotel Charleroi had a not-for-profit stand, Eastside Projects have invited them to consider undertaking a project in Birmingham. Initial conversations have taken place around post-industrial cities, landscapes, culture and the differences between Charleroi and Birmingham. As a productive next step, Hotel Charleroi will spend time in both Birmingham and Nottingham, with the event at Primary reflecting on where this collaboration might go next.

“Our initial conversations were enough to whet the appetite and demand that we should get to know each other better, share ideas, question each others practice and look out for mutual situations where we could plan and improvise art into being. We both seem to be interested in responding to context, doing more with less, making drafts and reworking, reverse engineering and layering. We both play roles of host and guest. What else might we share? Where do we differ?” Gavin Wade, Eastside Projects

Eastside Projects makes art public. We are an international centre of excellence based in a free public gallery imagined and organised by artists, in partnership with Birmingham City University. We commission, produce and present experimental art practices and demonstrate ways in which art may be useful as part of society. Our influential Extra Special People programme develops UK talent positioned in a hyper-local and super-international context. Eastside Projects provides vital infrastructure and supports best practice by establishing and exercising new models for artists and curators to research, produce and thrive. We believe in working collaboratively towards change and do so to support the cultural growth of Birmingham. We do not make art for the public. We are the public that makes art. The artist-run space is not a stopgap. The artist-run space is a public good.

HOTEL CHARLEROI is a research project initiated by Adrien Tirtiaux, Antoine Turillon and Hannes Zebedin in 2009 through artist residencies and exhibitions in Charleroi. Located 60km south from Brussels, Charleroi is a decaying industrial town with all associated symptoms – high unemployment, rising crime, corruption affairs, etc. In response we organise sleeping facilities in Charleroi and invite artists and other professionals for informal residencies. We propose that residents use the city as a studio or laboratory for research and artistic interventions, and ask them to question the meaning of arriving as a guest in a city in terms of contemporary art production. The physical location of Hotel Charleroi changes every year, so do the local institutions with whom we collaborate and the topics on which we focus. We understand our non-institutional status as an advantage to create a dynamic platform, able to adapt itself to every occasion it encounters.

This event has been supported by Bundeskanzleramt Österreich

Paravent

This strand of activity invites guest organisations to physically present something that demonstrates an aspect of their working approach. These events are framed by a set of Paravent Crates – a type of folding screen – that can be reconfigured to divide the project spaces at Primary in a variety of ways. This structural device, along with what each organisation presents, provides an environment to hold this ‘in conversation’ event.

A 24-hour retreat exploring DIY electronics, sound and design will produce the content for this performance. Dirty Electronics’ Ugly Weekender will take a macroscopic approach towards electronic circuits, playing out the forms and investigating shapes and patterns latent in their design. “The most difficult challenges for designers of electronic objects now lie…in the realms of metaphysics, poetry, and aesthetics…” With: John Richards, Alexandra Moon-Age, Jennifer Lucy Allan, Natalie Kay-Thatcher, John Fass, Jim Frize, Phillip Henderson, et al.

An event that attempts to tackle the anxiety and neurosis generated from the condition of dyslexia. Imagining this condition as an academic shantytown, out of which a radicalised position may emerge in opposition to a world evermore dominated by text.

A cable is more than a mere length of wire. It is a trail to be followed, tracing a line between two points, or a meshwork of interwoven threads. Rammel Club will present installations, workshops and performances that explore the electronic aspects of auditory arts and collaborative improvisation. With: A.N.T. Attack, [D-C], Dale Cornish, Experimental Sonic Machines, Ian Watson, Marlo Eggplant, Melanie O’Dubshlaine, Mormor Den Rejsende, Murray Royston-Ward (contact mic surgery), Phantom Chips, Phil Julian and Trans/Human.